The repeat offenders who find their way into Boulder County's Integrated Treatment Courts have struggled with addiction and failed at probation.

So when offenders get something right, judges provide a reward in the form of a gift card or movie tickets.

"When people receive immediate rewards for good behavior, they are much more likely to continue that good behavior," said Boulder District Court Chief Judge Roxanne Bailin. "Positive reinforcement works better than constantly punishing bad behavior."

The program is based on research from the National Drug Court Institute. People who are prone to addiction, in particular, benefit from an immediate reward for recent progress, Bailin said.

But providing the incentives costs between $30,000 and $50,000 a year. Now, officials and volunteers with the treatment court are seeking donors to help pay some of that cost.

"Every dollar that we don't spend on incentives, we could spend on more treatment," Bailin said. "We already provide some subsidized treatment, but we could provide more."

To raise awareness about the work of the drug courts, volunteers have launched a website touting the program's benefits. Actor Martin Sheen even recorded a video for the website, bouldertreatmentcourts.org.

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The Integrated Treatment Court provides intensive supervision, counseling and treatment to people with substance abuse issues who have violated the terms of their probation. Usually, they are people who have had frequent run-ins with the law and who now are facing prison or longer jail sentences.

Since the drug court started in 2006, 650 people have gone through the program. Fewer than 20 percent of program graduates commit a new offense within 480 days of completing probation, compared to 43 percent of probationers who don't go through the drug court. Those who do re-offend typically get in trouble for less serious offenses, Bailin said.

The drug court, which serves between 48 and 80 people a year, has an annual budget of around $500,000, but court officials believe it ultimately saves taxpayer's money in fewer jail stays.

"It seems like the perfect piece of this for the community to pick up," Bailin said about the incentives. "It seems to make more sense for the court to pick up the costs of treatment and of drug tests. Providing rewards seems more like what the community should be doing to support the program."

David Marks, a Boulder attorney who serves on the board of directors of the treatment court, said he hopes the general public checks out the website, learns more about the program and considers making a donation.

Any money raised through the website will go entirely to paying for incentives and rewards. The administrative costs are absorbed through the general court budget, Marks said.

Often, the incentives are targeted in a way that encourages new, healthy habits that replace old, destructive ones, such as a gift card to a sporting goods store.

"The incentives are a nice way to say, 'Hey, you're doing a good job,'" Marks said. "It's a perk that lets them do something nice for their families or for themselves. The hope is that it benefits their new lifestyle."

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